ROCK SPRINGS - It was the Nomex pants that saved him.

High Desert Fire District fire fighter Jesse Harrand was using a terra-torch to clear brush during a small, lightning-caused fire last month in Sweetwater County when the torch began leaking jelly fuel. The fuel ignited and just like that, his pants were ablaze.

"It apparently burned for a while, though I didn't even notice," said Harrand, a five-year fire fighting veteran for the Bureau of Land Management.

"Those kevlar pants saved me … my fire fighting gear did what is was supposed to do," Harrand said. "The one time I really needed it, it worked."

Those pants and a lot of other fire fighting gear were on display Thursday during the BLM's media day at the High Desert Fire District facility in the Rock Springs Field Office.

Though the rains continued in southwest Wyoming this week, the district is preparing for another Wyoming fire season that could be tame or brutal, depending on the weather.

"It's hard to make a prediction about the fire season … there's an awful lot of new grass out there and there's the potential for large fire growth when it all dries out," said High Desert District Manager Kyle Cowan.

"The message we want to send is all about fire safety … we want the public to make good decisions and to be safe and careful with fire," Cowan said.

The High Desert Fire District is one of the largest districts in the nation. The approximately 15 million-acre district stretches across Wyoming's southern tier and runs from the Idaho border to the Nebraska border.

The district boasts seven fire engines and 65 employees located in Rock Springs, Rawlins, Kemmerer and Pinedale.

The district also has a helicopter dispatch center located in Rawlins.

Cowan said the district has had some trouble recruiting new fire fighters over the past few years, but it's getting better, due in part to the recent economic recession.

"It has been tough to compete with the gas patch … but we've had some success recruiting from outside the area," he said. "But I think this year, the tide has changed somewhat. We've seen a lot of local interest of late."

Fire prevention specialist Derrick Youngerman - who plays Smokey the Bear - said the district routinely presents fire prevention programs to area school children, which includes information on campfire management, fireworks safety and other preventative measures.

He said presentations to high school-age kids also serves as a good tool for recruitment efforts.

"This really is a great summer job for kids," Youngerman said.

Contact southwest Wyoming bureau reporter Jeff Gearino at 307-875-5359 or gearino@tribcsp.com.

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